We communicated some time ago on my wife’s overstay at Oswestry Aldi and the amicable outcome. Our daughter recently found herself in the same situation at the same store. (No, not pushing her luck, she didn’t know of my wife’s incident.) With the help of your column and website, I composed the letters shown below on her behalf. It got an immediate result: a letter from Parking Eye withdrawing the charge and a phone call from Aldi telling us to forget all about it.

"To Parking Eye Ltd., PO Box 565, CHORLEY, PR6 6HT Dear Sirs, PCN XXXXXXX/XXXXXX Receipt of you letter dated 10th June is acknowledged. The amount already tendered of £10 is, I believe, reasonable compensation to your client and / or you at your client’s premises whilst shopping there. The sum is significantly greater than local car parking charges in the town, many sites being free of charge. I do not consider I “entered into a contract” with you / your client as I was unaware of the time restrictions on the site (I now consider the signage informing motorists to be inadequate, given the relatively cramped site where preoccupations of safe driving on the site (should) take precedence when entering the site.

"As a new customer of your client, I did not have the benefit of prior knowledge of the restrictions.) I believe the provisions of Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 are applicable as I am being asked to pay a disproportionately high sum in compensation. As several other parking places on the site were available during the times I was using the parking area, I do not believe you / you client suffered a pecuniary loss. I also believe a Court would award only “reasonable” compensation if it were shown a “contract” existed.

"Should you choose to persist in further demands for further payment, consideration must be given to the offence of harassment under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997. Yours faithfully,XXXXXXXX cc The Regional Manager, Aldi UK Ltd, Chester High Road, Neston, Wirral, CH64 3TS."